Know like and trust

Connecting with your ideal clients isn’t always as straightforward as you’d like it to be. The following communication tips will help you craft your message so it’s more likely to attract the attention of those elusive prospective customers!

Tip 1: Know your target customers

How do we get to know people? We ask questions – and REALLY listen to their answers. Find out as much as you can about exactly who your ideal customers are. Get to know their age, gender, marital status, spending habits, likes and dislikes, etc.

What keeps them awake at night? Identify their problem/s

How can you tap into their problem and offer a solution?

What motivates them to buy?

Tip 2: Know where to find your prospects

It’s important to know where your ideal customers hang out. If you send your message on the wrong channel, they’ll miss it and you’ll be disappointed that you’ve wasted valuable time and money investing in the wrong marketing. Take the time to get to know …

Where do your customers look for information?

Which social media channels are they active on?

How do they prefer to receive communication from you? Is it email, text message, newsletters, social media posts, etc.

Tip 3: Understand some people need nurturing before they buy

Not all your ideal customers will be ready to buy the first time they hear your marketing message. In fact, most people won’t buy when they first hear about your business. This is why it’s important to be persistent and consistent with our marketing messages.

One of the most important, and often overlooked, communication tips is that we need to build the “know, like and trust factor” first. This is where social media can be particularly useful.

Thanks to social media and email marketing, we can connect with prospects more effectively and frequently

Tap into these resources to form a connection with your prospects

Be aware of the Rule of 7 – where prospects need to see/hear your message at least 7 times before they commit to buying from you

Tip 4: Give them a reason to connect with you

Do you like being “sold to”? Most people don’t, so why would you do it to your customers? You need to give them a good reason to connect with you. Your message also needs to be tailored and clearly expressed to capture their attention.

Share useful content and relevant information

Invite them to join your community – everyone loves to belong

Offer loyalty discounts or special offers to your community members

Offer them a bonus if they introduce a friend or family member

Tip 5: Connect, don’t sell!

You will only build a strong connection with your customers by adding value, not through selling to them. It’s important to provide information which helps them in some way, but at the same time, it can allow them to understand more about your business and why you’re the best choice for your product or service.

Craft stories that evoke an emotional connection with your brand

Share client success stories – everyone loves good news

Use videos of you, your team and your customers

Illustrate your expertise and that of your team

Remember it’s SOCIAL media – share, don’t be pushy or hard sell

Build your profile as an industry expert

If you successfully adopt these communication tips, there’s no need to sell. Your ideal customers will be lining up to buy from you!

Hi, I’m Lyndall Guinery-Smith, The Professional Writer. I write copy dedicated to attracting and engaging your ideal clients … and improving your bottom line. I happily work with clients all over Australia.Email me to arrange an obligation-free discussion about your latest project.

These 7 simple Company Profile tips may be helpful if you’re struggling with what to include and what to leave out of this important document. The tips are designed for a multi-page Company Profile, such as those used by many business in the construction, cleaning and real estate industries, just to name a few.

Following are 7 Simple Company Profile tips for struggling marketers

Identify your ideal customer

Before you start writing your content, it’s important to know who you’re targeting and what they’re looking for. Just who is your ideal customer? Assume they know nothing about your company. You need to include some basic information about what you do, where you’re located and the cost of your products of services.

Know the problem you solve

Clearly define the problem you solve for your customers (think big picture here) and outline how you solve it. For example, if you’re a portrait photographer, you don’t just take photos, you capture the essence of the person you’re photographing and help them portray their best side.

Start with a benefit

Many businesses start their Company Profile with a boring company history. There’s a saying in marketing – “Nobody cares who you are until you tell them what you can do for them”. If you start with an introduction outlining what you do for your customers, and your passion for your business/products/services, you’re more likely to have an engaged audience.

K.I.S.S. – Keep It Short and Simple

Most people are time poor and don’t want to read screeds of information. They just want to know a little bit about you to ascertain whether they want to do business with you. It’s important to give them the opportunity to get to know, like & trust you, but you don’t need loads and loads of information to do this. The aim of a Company Profile is to get the reader interested in doing business with you. They need the basics, written in a way which engages them and has them wanting to know more about you.

Use an index and topic headings

A list of topics and page numbers at the front of the document will help your readers to quickly locate the information they’re looking for. Of course, you hope they will read the entire document. However this is rarely the case, so use topic headings to make it easy for your readers to scan.

Use visuals

Use photos of yourself, your staff and your business premises if appropriate. This is another important step in your readers getting to know, like and trust you. People do business with people and using photos is a great way to form a connection with prospective clients. Using diagrams, maps and illustrations, where appropriate, can also be very helpful.

Use these Company Profile tips to map out your profile

Where to start? Grab a piece of paper or a blank document and start with an outline of the topics you need to cover. It doesn’t have to be perfect, just write it all down and you can add or delete later. Then add information to expand on each of the topics.

I certainly hope these 7 simple Company Profile tips have helped you write a better profile which gets noticed by your prospective customers. However, if you feel you’re in need of professional help with writing an outstanding Company Profile, please feel free to email me at any time.

Hi, I’m Lyndall Guinery-Smith, The Professional Writer. I write copy dedicated to attracting and engaging your customers – and improving your bottom line. I happily work with clients all around Australia.Email me to arrange an obligation-free discussion about your latest project. Or if you’d like to learn how to connect with your audience and build your business, why not input your email address and receive my regular marketing updates in your mailbox? You can sign up for our mailing list at the base of the Home Page on www.ProfessionalWriter.com.au.

So, you want to know how to get customers to trust you and your business? Here are the details …

As you probably already know, people buy from businesses they know, like and trust. Once they get to know and like your business, you’ll need to understand how to win your customer’s trust. It’s often a step-by-step process, and it can take time to build trust. Of course, the level of trust required by customers sometimes depends on the value of the purchase. For a small purchase at a low price, the required level of trust is low, whereas it’s usually high when it comes to more expensive items such as furniture, cars, travel and houses.

Your website is most often the first point of contact for prospective customers and a valuable resource in building your “know, like and trust factor”.

This is the third article in a three-part series which will help you boost your “Know, like and trust factor”. Click on the following links to read about how to get customers to know and like you.

9 ways to win your customer’s trust through your website…

1. Address Your Audience

Know who is reading your information and write with your audience in mind. Think about their level of understanding of your products and services, and clearly explain what they need to know to make a purchasing decision.

2. Be Clear

Make sure the information on your website is easy to navigate and clearly written. Use everyday language rather than jargon.

3. Show Customers How You Help Them

If a prospective customer lands on your site, they’re most likely looking for information about your company or your products and services. They have a problem and you need to clearly demonstrate how you’re going to solve it for them.

4. Have a page for FAQs

Answer every frequently asked question so that your buyers have all the information they need to make an informed buying decision. If you really want to win your customer’s trust, you need to make sure all the information they need is readily available.

5. Be Authentic

Be yourself, stick to your brand message – don’t try to be something you’re not. Your prospective customers will quickly lose interest if they feel you’re not being authentic.

It’s also important to humanise your content, making it simple and easy for readers. Don’t be too formal and staid. Remember to keep your audience in mind.

6. Be Generous

Where appropriate, give something away for free. This may be a free trial, a sample of your product or an information product which shares valuable information and educates them about your products or shares industry information.

Industry experts often advise us to “give away some of our best stuff” in order to build trust.

7. Be Consistent

If you make a promise, keep it. Do you have an email newsletter or a blog? This applies to your schedule for sending out newsletters or posting blog articles. If you say you’re going to post daily, post daily, or if it’s weekly, fortnightly or monthly, ensure you follow through on this. While it might seem minor to you, the recipient can feel let down if you don’t deliver what you say you will.

Consistency is also important when it comes to the quality of your posts.

Updating your blog and social media can be time-consuming, so it sometimes falls through the cracks. Try not to let this happen. If a prospective customer goes to your Facebook page, will they find any recent posts? If you’re busy, you can schedule your posts to appear daily or as often as you like.

8. Leverage Social Proof

Ask for testimonials from your clients and display them on your website – tap into the power of third party endorsements.

Provide case studies showing the process and outcomes your product or service provides. Before and after photos can have a big impact.

9. Make it easy to contact you

Make it clear how you can be contacted, whether it’s by phone, email or an online enquiry form. If you want prospects to phone you, be sure to include your phone number in big bold letters or have a separate button in the sidebar which clearly shows your phone number.

If you have an online enquiry form, ensure your system is set up to receive an email immediately and make sure that email address is monitored. On the form, you need to inform prospects of the period in which they can expect a reply, for example, within 24 hours, 48 hours or whatever is appropriate. Follow through and ensure they receive a reply within that time or you may break their trust before you even establish a relationship with them.

These tips have outlined how to win your customer’s trust through your website content. If you’d like assistance with writing website content for your specific audience, please feel free to contact me to arrange a chat.

Hi, I’m Lyndall Guinery-Smith, The Professional Writer. I love to write copy dedicated to attracting and engaging your customers – and improving your bottom line. I happily work with clients all around Australia. Email me to arrange an obligation-free discussion about your latest project.

So, you want to know how to get customers to like you and your business? Here’s the lowdown…

These days, every business should have an online presence, because the first thing a prospective customer does is Google you! The purpose of your company’s website is to introduce your business, your products or services and to influence prospects to know, like and trust you … then they will be more likely to buy from you. This process can be somewhat challenging – but don’t worry, this post is here to help you!

This is the second article in a three-part series which will help you boost your “Know, like and trust factor”.

Once your prospective customers or current customers have found you online, your site’s content provides the opportunity to get to know all about you. It should also influence readers or prospective customers to like you and your business. I’m not just talking Social Media “likes” here, I’m talking about your prospects having an affection for you and/or your business. People buy from those they know, like and trust.

Here are 7 tips to get customers to LIKE you and your business:

Be human, be real, be authentic

This is the most important part of building a positive relationship with prospective customers. Treat people the way you’d like to be treated. Be nice! Most people can spot a fake, and that just turns them off, causing them to click away faster than lightning, so make sure everything you post or write online is what you’d say to your customers face-to-face. Don’t try to copy what others are doing if it doesn’t portray the true essence of your own brand identity.

Tell your story

Take the time to explain how your business started, where you’ve come from, and where you’re headed. This will help you build rapport with readers and lay the foundations for a relationship of trust. The About Us page is the second most clicked page on most sites, after the Home Page. It’s important to fill your About Us page with your story, telling it in a succinct yet interesting way that demonstrates your passion. Be sure to include photos of your premises and/or team members where appropriate.

Be seen

Most people like to know the face behind the name. Use photos to show who you are and portray a friendly and approachable image. Use video to allow people to get to know you better, and to demonstrate your products, services and expertise.

Listen

Ask questions and deliver answers to your customers as a great way to build rapport with them. Always aim to add value. Social media can be a brilliant way to interact with prospects and answer their queries in a helpful and polite manner.

Contribute to the conversation

Share content and promote other people, then they will be more likely to share yours. Sharing also helps promote your profile and expertise.

Show your genuine appreciation

Monitor your online accounts. Responding to comments and thanking those who share your posts also goes a long way towards influencing people to like your business. If a prospect takes the time to comment on your post or ask a question, this offers you the opportunity to start a relationship with them. If you don’t respond to comments, the customer may feel that you are simply disinterested in them and their business.

DON’T SELL

Nobody likes to be sold to, particularly straight up. Focus on providing value to build relationships before asking for a sale online. We are less likely to commit to buying from someone we don’t know, so take your time building rapport first and earn the right to ask for the sale. Remember that social media is SOCIAL, not selling media!!

I’ve seen a variety of ratios, which are either 80/20 or 90/10. This means 90% of your content and posts should be adding value and sharing knowledge, with only 10% of content asking prospects to buy. If you’re clever (or you have a good writer!), your posts will clearly demonstrate the value of your product or service so that people will be lining up to buy as soon as they finish reading your post.

These are just a few tips to get you to help you get customers to like you and your business. The next post in this series will explore “How to build trust online”.

Hi, I’m Lyndall Guinery-Smith, The Professional Writer. I have a strong background in small business management and helping businesses to build their “Know, like and trust” factor.

I love to write copy dedicated to attracting and engaging your clients, and improving your bottom line, and I happily work with clients all around Australia. Email me to arrange an obligation-free discussion about your latest project.